Snow skis are elongated generally planar having a sharply upturned front or shovel and a flat or upturned rear. The upwardly turned front enables the ski to ride over bumps in the snow rather than plowing therethrough. Most currently manufactured skis are flexible along their length and include a concave camber between the front and rear. The camber is such that when the bottom surface of the ski is placed on a flat surface, portions adjacent the front and rear of the ski will be in contact with the flat surface, while the central weight supporting portion of the ski will be spaced from the surface. In the typical ski, the camber may amount to approximately one-half inch. The camber presumably is intended to improve stability.
Many variations of the above described snow ski have been developed over the years. For example, snow skates were developed presumably for the purpose of enabling a person to skate over a surface that was at least partly covered with snow. These snow skates generally followed the construction of ice skates, but with a considerably broader runner. Examples of these prior art snow skates are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,428,676 which issued to Barlow on Sept. 12, 1922, U.S. Pat. No. 1,502,951 which issued to Halverson on July 29, 1924, U.S. Pat. No. 1,512,327 which issued to Young on Oct. 21, 1924 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,469,798 which issued to Trachslin on May 10, 1949. It is believed that these snow skates were intended for use on a generally flat surface where the skater provided the primary motive power. These prior art snow skates were inherently too unstable to be maneuvered on any significant downhill slopes. A more recent variation of these prior art snow skates referred to as an ice ski is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,879,047 which issued to MacDonald on Apr. 22, 1975.
There have also been many variations to the above described downhill snow ski in an effort to improve some aspect of the skis' performance. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,933,360 which issued to Arai on Jan. 2, 1976 shows a standard ski having a plurality of apertures extending through the upturned front to cut down on wind resistance, and thereby enabling greater speeds to be achieved. German Offenlegungsschrift No. 25 56 650 and Swiss Pat. No. 272297 both show traditional skis wherein the bottom of the ski at the upturned portion is of a generally snow plow configuration. Skis with very pronounced longitudinal edges for improved gripping on turns are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,083,577 which issued to Ford on Apr. 11, 1978 and German Auslegeschrift No: 1 060 756 which was published on July 2, 1959.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,343,485 which issued to Johnston et al on Aug. 10, 1982 shows a long ski having a slight reverse camber. The forward end of this ski includes the standard upturned front portion and a slightly upturned rear portion. The center weight supporting part of the ski is narrower than either of the opposed ends, while the bottom of the ski is substantially flat from side to side. This ski is intended to teach novice skiers.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,085,947 issued to Sarver on Apr. 25, 1978 and shows a short ski with a rearwardly located boot mounting portion. Approximately the rear 40.5% of the ski is rigid, with the remaining forward portion being flexible. This flexible portion curves up slightly for approximately 32% of the overall length of the ski and then curves abruptly upward within about 17% of the forwardmost portion to define a conventionally shaped shovel. The skis taper outwardly along their opposed edges to form a relatively wide front.
Still another version of the typical prior art ski is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,377,297 which issued to Staufer on Mar. 22, 1983. This ski is of standard flexible construction throughout and includes a wide front and a wide rear. The ski narrows somewhat inwardly from the front and rear portions, but then widens slightly at the central portion of the ski. This somewhat wider central portion is clearly defined as being narrower than either of the opposed ends. This configuration is purported to improve the ability with which the skier can make sharp turns. However, any such improvements are believed to be minor in view of the fact that the limitations of the standard ski construction would prevail. Specifically, the maximum width at the front and rear portions of the ski would continue to impose the greatest resistance in attempting to make sharp turns. Thus, the provision of a somewhat wider central portion in an otherwise standard ski would not appreciable enhance the turning ability of that prior art ski.
In recent years it has become desirable to perform complex but graceful maneuvers while skiing downhill. More particularly, a recreational or art form referred to as ballet skiing is developing where the skier attempts to perform maneuvers more traditionally associated with figure skating or ice dancing. The ballet skier generally skis without poles while performing numerous sequential complex turns, backwards skiing, alternately skiing on one leg or the other and periodically crossing the legs and skis over one another. The development of this art form has now become limited by the capabilities of the prior art skis. Specifically, the known skis, including those described above, are not capable of performing the complex yet graceful maneuvers that would otherwise be desired in ballet skiing.
Experimental attempts have been made to modify prior art skis to yield improved performance. For example, short versions of the standard ski have been tried, but these do not provide the desired results. Specifically, the shorter skis of prior art construction became less flexible by virtue of their shorter length. Consequently, in many types of snow the upturned front portion acts as a brake that abruptly stops the skier and causes falls. This problem can be overcome somewhat by incorporating a snow plow structure to the bottom side of the upturned portion. However, the effectiveness of the snow plow would vary drastically depending upon the consistency of the snow, which in turn would vary drastically from one day to the next. Experimental attempts also were made to employ a ski with a generally oval configuration and upwardly turned front and rear portions. This construction was somewhat similar to the standard water ski. Skis of this configuration, however, could not yield the required stability.
In considering the needs for improvement, it was realized that a ballet skier could not reach peak performance within the few months of snow skiing that are available in most parts of the world. Therefore, it was considered desirable to provide a ski that could perform on both snow and other non-liquid surfaces to enable the skier to maintain a desired level of skill year round.
In view of the above, it is an object of the subject invention to provide a snow ski capable of performing complex turning and pivoting maneuvers on downhill slopes.
It is another object of the subject invention to provide a ski that can be used by both experienced and inexperienced skiers to perform complex and simple turns.
Another object of the subject invention is to provide a ski that can turn easily while still maintaining an acceptable degree of stability during all skiing conditions.
Another object of the subject invention is to provide a ski structurally configured to perform well on both snow and other non-liquid surfaces.
Still another object of the subject invention is to provide a ski that can be manufactured easily and inexpensively.
A further object of the subject invention is to provide an efficient process for manufacturing a ski.